One of the hero-martyrs of Belgium was Alois Van Keirsbilk, a
well-to-do citizen of Thielt, beloved of his townspeople, a man of
family, and a zealous patriot. He did what he might to serve, and many,
they say in Thielt, were the services rendered. But there came a day
when the rumor went round that the German Kaiser and his entourage were
to visit Thielt, and Van Keirsbilk suddenly conceived a great project
for the salvation of Belgium, for the liberation of the world from the
nightmare of war. Egbert Hans tells the story of Alois Van Keirsbilk
and it was first published in its completeness in the _New York
Times_ of Sunday, June 22, 1919. But a little abbreviated, it is here
reproduced as Hans told it:
“Thielt was the headquarters of the Fourth German Army and sheltered
the Commander-in-Chief with a staff of hundreds of officers. Alois Van
Keirsbilk was chief conductor on the railway between Thielt and Bruges.
Also he was the chief of a secret organization which had only one
object—‘help to our boys and death to the enemy.’ The organization was
in communication with the Belgian army through spies who made regular
trips into Holland across the ‘cable of death,’ and many a German plan
originated at headquarters in Thielt failed, thanks to the activity of
Alois and his men.
“It was not long before Alois saw his chance for a big stroke. The
Kaiser was coming to Thielt on the first of November. A desperate
attack was to be made against the Belgian forces along the Yser and
from there on against Ypres and Dunkirk, and Wilhelm II in person was
to inspect the preparations.
“Kill the Kaiser and the war will be over, was the firm conviction of
Alois and his friends, and they set to work. Alois acquired all the
information that his organization could procure as to the movements
and schedule of the imperial visitor, and sent all the details to his
agents in the Belgian army, with the request that airmen be sent at the
opportune moment ‘to kill the Kaiser!’
“Only one of the three messengers who were sent out reached the other
side of the electric cable, for at that time the guards were doubled.
But one was sufficient, and when the first of November came Alois felt
confident that something would happen.
“THE BEST LAID PLANS”
“The big dinner at which the Kaiser and his staff were to gather
around the table, and for which all the best silver in town had been
requisitioned, was to begin at 2 o’clock. At that moment anxious eyes
watched the sky toward the west. Would they come, the airmen with their
bombs to do the deed that would finish the war? Would they be in time?
“At 2.15 there was a speck in the blue sky. It grew bigger and bigger,
and bigger, and soon the watchers distinguished three flying machines.
In haste Alois communicated with his friends. Barely had those who were
warned taken shelter when the first explosion was heard. Then for a few
minutes the town of Thielt shuddered as bomb after bomb exploded.
“It was a well-managed raid and the daring airmen escaped in safety,
but it was all in vain. There had been a sudden change in the Kaiser’s
schedule and the war lord had left Thielt at 2 o’clock sharp. During
the bombardment his motor cars were speeding along the road to Bruges
and his life was safe.
“But the commander of the Fourth German Army raged in his private
office at the _kommandatur_. The secret of the visit had plainly got
out. The Kaiser, the idol of 70,000,000 Germans, had barely escaped
death. The guilty had to be found and punished.
“A contra-spy system was organized at once and large sums were promised
for any bit of information. Slowly but surely Alois was drawn into the
net woven by a most minute and complete investigation. On Feb. 2 he was
summoned to the _kommandatur_ and taken prisoner. Already three of his
coöperators were there.
“It was then that Alois Van Keirsbilk showed the courage which won for
him the name of ‘the Silent Hero.’ He knew that one word spoken lightly
might betray the whole of his organization, and his last word to his
friends who were still free had been, ‘Do not let my absence or death
scare you; but keep up the work that we have been doing.’ After his
arrest nothing could induce him to speak even a word. All devices, old
and new, were tried by the _kommandatur_—tortures as well as promises,
the menaces of a cruel death, and the promise of life in luxury. It
was all in vain. Perhaps Alois thought of the many lives he had in his
hands. Anyway, he remained silent.
“He was condemned to death on Feb. 25, and then the Germans created and
applied as devilish a scheme of mental torture for a human being as
could be devised. Alois had two children, and a third was to be born
soon.
“‘On the day that new life enters your home your life will end unless
you speak,’ said the German inquisitor. Undoubtedly Alois thought of
his wife, who would be calling for him that day more than ever. Perhaps
he thought of the new baby also. Nevertheless he was still true to his
name, ‘the Silent.’
“On the 5th of April a little girl was born in the Van Keirsbilk home.
It might seem unbelievable, but evidently the Germans had waited for
the event. On the same day they sent official word to ‘Madame Van
Keirsbilk’ that if she desired to see her husband still alive, she
could see him that day at 3 o’clock in the prison at Ghent. A merciful
neighbor nurse saw to it that the message did not reach the mother,
then nursing her day-old baby. Instead the eldest girl, 10 years old,
was sent to the prison to see her father. Full of joy, in her happy
ignorance, she exclaimed:
“‘Oh, father, you must come home with me. We have a little sister, and
mother wants to show it to you. Come, father!’
“But father could not come. He pressed his little girl in his arms.
He could not tell her she would never see him again, for he wanted to
spare the mother, who had to live for the children. Not a word did he
say. One kiss, and the big prison gate closed after the child, while
her father prepared himself to die.